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List of Naruto characters
The Naruto manga and anime series features an extensive cast of characters created by Masashi Kishimoto. The series takes place in a fictional universe where countries vie for power by employing ninja who can use superhuman abilities in combat. The Naruto storyline is divided into two parts, simply named Part I and Part II, with the latter taking place two-and-a-half years after the conclusion of Part I. The series' storyline follows the adventures of a group of young ninja from the village of Konohagakure. The titular character of the series is Naruto Uzumaki, an energetic ninja who wishes to become Hokage, the leader of Konohagakure. During the early part of the series, he is assigned to Team 7, in which he meets Sasuke Uchiha, a taciturn and highly skilled "genius" of the Uchiha clan; Sakura Haruno, who is infatuated with Sasuke yet has Naruto's affection; and Kakashi Hatake, the quiet and mysterious leader of the team. Over the course of the series, Naruto interacts with and befriends several fellow ninja in Konohagakure and other villages. He also encounters the series' antagonists, including Orochimaru, a former ninja of Konohagakure scheming to destroy his former home, as well as the elite ninja of the criminal organization Akatsuki. As he developed the series, Kishimoto created the three primary characters as a basis for the designs of the other three-person teams. He gyalso used characters in other ''shōnen'' manga as references in his design of the characters, a decision that was criticized by several anime and manga publications. The characters that Kishimoto developed, however, were praised for incorporating many of the better aspects of previous shōnen characters, although many publications lamented the perceived lack of growth beyond such stereotypes. The visual presentation of the characters was commented on by reviewers, with both praise and criticism given to Kishimoto's work in the manga and anime adaptations. Creation and conception When Masashi Kishimoto was originally creating the Naruto series, he looked to other shōnen manga for inspiration while still attempting to make his characters as unique as possible. Kishimoto cites Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball series as one of these influences, noting that Goku, the protagonist of Dragon Ball, was a key factor when creating Naruto Uzumaki due to his energetic and mischievous personality.Uzumaki: the Art of Naruto, p. 139 To complement Naruto, Kishimoto worked on creating a rival that was a "cool genius", as he believed this was "the archetypal rival character". After reviewing different manga for ideas, he ultimately developed Sasuke Uchiha. When creating the primary heroine, Kishimoto admitted, "I don't have a definite image of what a heroine should be". He eventually created Sakura, emphasizing "her energy and flirtatious spirit" as her primary characteristics. These three characters would be the mold for the other three main Naruto teams. The separation of the characters into different teams was intended to give each group a specific flavor. Kishimoto wished for each team member to be "extreme", having a high amount of aptitude in one given attribute, yet talentless in another. This approach was used to make each team perform best when individual members worked together to overcome their weaknesses. Having watched tokusatsu dramas as a child, Kishimoto wished for his teams to be different from the superhero teams in these dramas, dismissing the value of a team in which all the teammates were "strong to the point of perfection". Kishimoto notes that the different roles the characters assume is similar to many role-playing games, and "each character stands out better that way".Uzumaki: the Art of Naruto, p. 141 Kishimoto inserted villains into the story to counteract the lead characters' moral values. He stated that this focus on illustrating the difference in values is central to his creation of villains to the point that, "I don't really think about them in combat". The villains' physical appearances were also embellished to differentiate them from other characters, making it easier for a reader to follow the story and identify the villains, even in heated battle scenes. Kishimoto noted that making the villains "flamboyant" with a "showy costume" is "one of my guiding principles", as well as making them "more memorable".Uzumaki: the Art of Naruto, p. 142 When drawing the characters, Kishimoto consistently follows a five-step process: concept and rough sketch, drafting, inking, shading, and coloring. These steps are followed when he is drawing the manga and making the color illustrations that commonly adorn the cover of tankōbon, the cover of the Weekly Shōnen Jump, or other media, but the toolkit he uses occasionally changes.Uzumaki: the Art of Naruto, pp. 112–114 For instance, he used an airbrush for one illustration for a Weekly Shōnen Jump cover, but decided not to use it for future drawings largely due to the cleanup required.Uzumaki: the Art of Naruto, p. 118 Main characters The main characters of the Naruto series are part of Team 7, a group of ninja affiliated with the village of Konohagakure. After Sasuke Uchiha's departure from Konohagakure at the end of Part I, the team disbands. During Part II, the team reforms as Team Kakashi with two new members: Sai, who occupies Sasuke's position, and Yamato, who acts as assistant leader. 'Naruto Uzumaki' is the title character and protagonist of the series. He was the first character created by Kishimoto during the conception of the series, and was designed with many traits from other shōnen characters. In the series, Naruto has ambitions of becoming Hokage, the leader of Konohagakure. Because he is the host of Kurama, the nine-tailed fox that attacked Konoha, he is ostracized by the other villagers. He compensates for this with his cheerful and boisterous personality, and over the course of the series, manages to befriend many foreign and Konoha ninja. He develops an especially close relationship with Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, two of his fellow ninja in Team 7. Naruto's voice actor in the Japanese anime is Junko Takeuchi, and he is voiced by Maile Flanagan in the English adaptation. 'Sasuke Uchiha' is Naruto's rival, designed by Kishimoto to be the "cool genius" as he saw it to be an integral part of an ideal rivalry. He is one of the few remaining members of the Uchiha clan along with his brother, Itachi Uchiha, who killed the rest of their family. Because of this, Sasuke's sole desire is to kill his brother, and he develops a cold and withdrawn personality. When made a member to Team 7, Sasuke began to consider them precious to the point of risking his life to protect them, while focusing less on revenge at the start of the series. Following an encounter and subsequent defeat at the hands of his brother in Part I, Sasuke severs his ties and leaves the village to seek more power from the criminal Orochimaru. In the Japanese anime, Sasuke is voiced by Noriaki Sugiyama, and his English voice actor is Yuri Lowenthal. 'Sakura Haruno' is the sole female member of Team 7. Kishimoto created her as the heroine of the series, although he has admitted that he has little perception of what an ideal heroine should be. As a child, Sakura was taunted by other children because of her large forehead, a feature Kishimoto has tried to emphasize in Sakura's appearances. She was comforted by Ino Yamanaka. As the two continued to grow, however, they became increasingly distant due to their shared affection for Sasuke Uchiha. During the early of Part I, Sakura is infatuated with Sasuke, and looks down upon Naruto Uzumaki (though the boys' opinion on her is completely opposite, albeit more subtlely). In the Japanese anime, her voice actress is Chie Nakamura, and she is voiced by Kate Higgins in the English adaptation. 'Kakashi Hatake' is the leader of Team 7 and the sensei to Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. Kishimoto had originally intended for Kakashi to be introduced earlier in the series than he actually was, and created him as an easygoing person that would be able to keep the members of Team 7 in check. Kakashi treats his leadership position with a detached manner, and is consistently late to meetings as a result. During a gaiden on his past, Kakashi is revealed to been trained by Naruto's father during the Third Great Ninja War and obtained his Sharingan eye from one of his teammates, Obito Uchiha. Kakashi's Japanese voice actor in the anime is Kazuhiko Inoue, and his English voice actor is Dave Wittenberg. Antagonists 'Zabuza Momochi' is a former member of Kirigakure's Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, a group of ninja that use particularly large swords in battle. Zabuza possesses a sword called . After a failed coup d'état wherein he tried to assassinate the Fourth Mizukage, Zabuza and his followers fled the village and began working as mercenary assassins. He also takes in a young boy, Haku, as his apprentice, mostly treating him as a tool although he ultimately does care for him. Zabuza is skilled in water-based abilities, but his area of expertise is in assassinations in areas covered by mist. His talents lead to his commission by a criminal named Gato to kill a man named Tazuna, which he is unable to perform due to interference by Tazuna's bodyguard, Kakashi Hatake. Because he takes too long to complete the task, his contract is revoked, and his employer tries to have Zabuza killed. Zabuza kills him first, though is mortally wounded and dies soon afterwards. He is one of the shinobi resurrected by Kabuto to fight on the Akatsuki side and is defeated, being released from Kabuto's control in a rematch with Kakashi. In the Japanese anime, his voice actor is Unshō Ishizuka, and his English voice actor is Steven Blum. 'Haku' is Zabuza Momochi's most faithful follower. Before he started working for Zabuza, Haku lived as an orphan. His father killed his mother when it was discovered that he possessed a genetic ability, , which allows him to mix wind and water elements to create ice, and Haku then killed him. After wandering from place to place for a time he was found by Zabuza. He recognized Haku's talents and agreed to take him in as a tool. As a result, Haku becomes unquestioningly protective of and loyal to Zabuza, and only by being useful does he find a purpose in life. He ultimately gives his life in his mission to be useful to Zabuza, becoming a human shield to protect his master from Kakashi Hatake's Lightning Blade. Haku is resurrected by Kabuto later in the series to fight in the Shinobi World War until being sealed by the alliance. His voice actress in the Japanese anime is Mayumi Asano, and his English voice actress is Susan Dalian. Mona Marshall voiced Haku as a child. 'Orochimaru' is a criminal who was previously affiliated with Konohagakure. He serves as the principal villain of Part I. To emphasize his role as a villain, Kishimoto worked towards making him appear "pasty and sickly" as part of his theme of distinguishing villains from the protagonists.Uzumaki: the Art of Naruto, p. 128 In the series, Orochimaru is a former ninja of Konohagakure and a student of the Third Hokage. During his time in the village, he distinguished himself as one of the village's most powerful ninja along with his teammates, Jiraiya and Tsunade. His desire to obtain immortality led him to conduct experiments on other Konohagakure ninja, and to establish his own ninja village, Otogakure, as both his personal laboratory to continue his work and to amass a personal army to destroy Konoha with. His immortality technique involves transferring his consciousness between different host bodies, and his desire for a new host, particularly Sasuke Uchiha, is one of his driving motivations throughout most of the series. Because of his different host bodies and the disguises he assumes, a panoply of voice actors are used for Orochimaru; his most common voice actor in the Japanese anime is Kujira, and his corresponding English voice actor is Steven Blum. 'Kabuto Yakushi' is a spy working for Orochimaru, though he acts on his own whims. As a child with no memory of his past, he was found on a battlefield by a nun from Konohagakure who raised him before he was recruited by the Foundation as a spy for the village to infiltrate numerous countries and organizations. However, after the Foundation found him a risk to be kept alive for knowing too many secrets, Kabuto left with Orochimaru after being promised an identity he can call his own. Using his former affiliations, and infiltrating the Akatsuki, Kabuto gathers intelligence on Orochimaru's behalf; for instance, he participates in the bi-annual Chunin Exams as a Konoha representative to gather information on his fellow participants. Highly proficient with medical techniques and genetic manipulation, Kabuto devises means to heal wounds by reactivating dead cells to grow new ones and can form a scalpel with chakra to deal surgical strikes to his opponents. In Part II, after his mentor's defeat by Sasuke, Kabuto integrates some of Orochimaru's remains into his body to become powerful enough to not serve anyone again. Once perfecting the Reanimation Jutsu, Kabuto forces Obito Uchiha into a tenuous alliance with him under the promise that he can have Sasuke once they win the war against the Ninja Alliance. However, during the second day of the Fourth Great Ninja War, Itachi manages to break free of Kabuto's control and ends up forcing him to end the Reanimation Jutsu. In the Japanese anime, Kabuto is voiced by Nobutoshi Canna, and his English voice actor is Henry Dittman. 'Sound Four' are Orochimaru's elite bodyguards. The group was originally known as the "Sound Five" as they were forced to accept , the last of the Kaguya Clan who has his kin's ability to manipulate his bone structure, as leader after he defeated the entire group in battle. After Kimimaro became bedridden due to his illness, the group resumed calling themselves the Sound Four. As a group they specialize in barriers, defensive walls, sealing techniques as well as possessing their own individual unique techniques and Curse Marks that increase their strengths. The group is composed of , a large-sized man who specializes in absorbing chakra and close-quarters combat, , a six-armed ninja who can produce spider-webs to fight and specialized in ranged combat, and twin brother , who are the strongest of the Sound Four and count as one member due to their merging abilities, and , a woman that uses a flute to control summoned Ogres and cast illusions. Though introduced during Orochimaru's invasion of Konohagakure, the Sound Four do not become a prominent part of the story until sent by their leader to escort Sasuke Uchiha to him. Even with Kimimaro joining the group to ensure Sasuke's passage to Orochimaru, the Sound Five all died in the process during the Fourth Great Ninja War, Kimimaro is revived by Kabuto for the war against the allied Shinobi Forces. In the anime adaptation, unaware that Kabuto brought them back instead of Orochimaru, the Sound Four were also reanimated and were allowed to act on their impulse for revenge before being defeated. It was also at the time of the war's climax that Kabuto reveals that he assimilated the Sound Five's DNA to access their abilities. Akatsuki (One of Antagonist organization) Category:Fictional ninja Category:Lists of anime and manga characters Category:Naruto characters